Resilient holding means for straw packaging machines



15, 1947. P Q MOORE, JR 2,424,183

RESILIENT HOLDING MEANS FOR STRAW PACKAGING MACHINES Filed June 19,1946' 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN V EN TOR ATTORNEY. Y

July 15, 1947. c, MOORE, JR

RESILIENT HOLDING MEANS FOR STRAW PACKAGING MACHINES 2 Sheets-Sheet 2Filed June 19, 1946 Y'INVENTOR, Y PauZGM ooreJx,

ATTORNEY.

Patented July 15, 1947 RESILIENT HOLDING MEANS FOR STRAW PACKAGINGMACHINES Paul C. Moore, Jr., Baltimore, Md, assignor to Maryland PaperProducts Company, Inc., Baltimore, Md, a corporation of MarylandApplication June 19, 1946, Serial No. 677,762

Claims.

The present invention relates to machines which form a continuoustubular envelope, sever the same into sections of predetermined length,deliver the out sections as individual wrappers to a catcher whichdeposits the wrappers onto a rotary wrapper receiver which carries thewrappers past a loading device that injects a straw or straws endwiseinto the wrapper while the wrapper is held by the loading device againstan abutment endwise.

The invention seeks to improve the machine disclosed in the ToolanPatent No. 2,146,490 of February 7, 1939.

More particularly, the invention seeks to provide 'an improved means tohold the straws centered in the wrapper as soon as they shall have beenplaced therein by the loading device and while the loading device isbeing withdrawn from the filled wrapper.

Further, the invention seeks to provide an improvement in thestraw-carrying slide attachment that engages the end of the wrapperthrough which end the straw or straws are inserted, the more effectivelyto serve its intended purpose.

Other objects will in part be obvious and in part will be pointed outhereinafter.

To the attainment of the aforesaid objects and ends the inventionfurther resides in the novel details I of construction, combinations andarrangements of parts, all of which will be first fully described andwill then be specifically pointed out in the appended claims, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings in which- Fig. 1 is a top planview of a portion of a straw packaging machine to which my invention hasbeen applied. Figs. 2 and 3 are detail cross sections of the same on theline 22 of Fig. 1, showing two different positions of the parts in theircycle of operation.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Figs. 2 and 3 but taken on the line 4-4 ofFig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of one of the wrapper-engaging socket memberscarried by the push-bars.

Fig. 6 is a section on the line 66 of Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a rear elevation of the same.

Fig. 8 is a front elevation of the same.

Fig. 9 is a, view similar to Fig. 6, showing another form of awrapper-engaging member.

Fig. 10 is a front elevation of the same.

In the drawings, in which like numerals and letters of referenceindicate like parts in all the figures, l is the bed of the machine onwhich, in suitable bearings 2, is mounted the main rotatable shaft 3which carries the rotatable straw carrier composed of two spiders havingbifurcated arms 5 that extend radially from the hubs 4 and carry wrapperreceiving members 6, there being two such members 5 spaced apart asat 1. Each member 6 has a groove 8 into which the wrappers are placed bya wrapper-catching device of any approved construction, preferably thatdisclosed in the application for patent filed June 14, 1946, Ser. No.676,759, by John B. West. Such catching device includes two catchers 9which operate in the spaces 1 and are carried by a rod [0 that iscarried by one arm ll of a lever that is pivoted on a stationary shaftl2 held in suitable supports I3. The other arm 14 carries a roller IE tocooperate with a cam IE on a continuously rotating shaft ll, in order tolower the catchers from a wrapper-receiving position, Fig. 4, to awrapper-depositing position, Fig. 3. A return spring 24 restores thecatcher to a normal or wrapper-receiving position. The shaft l'2 alsosupports curved fingers l8 which cooperate with thefilled-package-discharging members l9.

Wrapper restraining guides 20 keep centrifugal force from dislodging thewrappers from the wrapper carrier. An abutment plate '2I prevents thewrappers from being pushed back, while being filled, beyond apredetermined distance and lines up the wrappers in the carrier.

The foregoing parts, not being of my invention, need not be described indetail as I make no claim thereto per se.

The machines which I have improved also include a straw hopper 22 and awrapper-loading mechanism which includes straw-carrying slide bars 23into which the straws are deposited from the hopper and from which thestraws are pushed by push bars into the wrappers via suitable fittings26.

The hopper mechanism, the slide bars and their operating mechanism, andthe push bars and their operating mechanism may, generically, be thesame as are shown in the Toolan patent aforesaid. However, the fittings26 through which the straws are passed into the wrappers and by whichthe wrappers are held against the abutment plate in the present case,are of my invention and are best shown in Figs. 5 et seq., by referenceto which and to Fig. 1 it will be seen that the wrapper-engaging member25 includes a bell portion 27 on the front upright portion 28. Theportions 21 and 26 have a passage through the same whose cross-sectionalshape is either elliptic (Figs. 5 to 8 inclusive) or round (Figs. 9 and10) accordingly as two straws or one straw are to be placed in awrapper. The entrance part of the passage is tapered as shown and ashoulder 30 is provided against which the wrapper end abuts previous toreceiving the straws (see dotted end 111, Fig. 6). countersunk holes 3|are provided to receive the attaching screws 25. The portion 28 is alsobell mounted as at 29 to facilitate the entrance of the straw or strawsinto the passage through portions 23 and 21.

In Figs. 9 and 10 those parts which correspond to like parts in Figs. to8 inclusive bear the same reference number plus the index letter a, andneed not be further described.

The cam shaft 32 operates the wrapper severing mechanism 33 and themechanism 34 which crimps the longitudinal fold of the paper striptogether and feeds the continuous wrapper forwardly, while theend-sealing crimping rollers 35 are operated by the separate shaft H.The mandrel On which the continuous wrapper tube is formed is indicatedby 39. The same not being my invention, no claim thereto is made by me.

In the Toolan machine aforesaid a pivoted finger (264, Fig. 13 of thatpatent) was used to hold. the packaged straws while the funnel memberswere being withdrawn. This finger device has not proven satisfactory inuse and did not always prevent the straws and wrappers from getting outof alignment in the rotary carrier, with the result that sometimes thepackage ends were improperly crimp-sealed. I have therefore improvedthis part of the machine by providing t'h'in resilient wires 35 whoseends are threaded loosely through studs 31 and their ends bent over asat 33. The studs are so located (Figs. 2, 3, and 4) that the wiresnormally lie across the curve of the fixed guides 20 as cords of an arc.Thus when the members 9 reach the position at the bottom of Fig. 3 thefilled wrappers engage wires 36, which holds the wrappers and strawstogether in the grooves 8.

As the wires preferably lie in vertical planes that pass between themembers 6 of the spiders, they will not engage those members but onlythe packages adjacent to the outer (left-right) members 6 of thespiders, and hence will firmly hold the packages seated in the members 6while the straw push rods and fittings 26 are being drawn back from thesame. The wires, being of light construction and loosely held, will notexert sufficient pressure to cut into the wrappers or effect a bendtherein, and their use has eliminated both the pivoted finger method(Toolan specification, page 2, column 2, line 67 to page 3, lines 1 to11) and the vacuum method (Toolan specification, page 3, lines 12 to 37inclusive) of the Toolan machine, and gives better results than eitherof said methods.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings, it is thought that. the construction, operation,and advantages of my improvements will be clear to those skilled in theart.

What I claim is:

1. In a straw packaging machine wherein are provided rotatable wrappercarriers and arcuate guides cooperatively associated with the same:

the improvement which comprises resilient wires carried by said arcuateguides and projecting across the path of the wrapper carriers atpredetermined places for purposes described.

2. In a straw packaging machine wherein arev provided a rotatable bodyhaving wrapper receiving and carrying members and arcuate guide platescooperatively associated with said body to prevent the wrappers andcontents from falling out of said carrying members as the said bodyrotates: the improvement which comprises flexible resilient elementsnormally held across the paths of said carrying members for holding theWrappers when filled with straws in said carrying members at apredetermined place in their paths of travel.

3. In a straw packaging machine wherein are provided a rotatable shaft,a pair of spiders secured to said shaft and spaced apart, each-spiderhaving arms, each arm having a pair of spacedapart wrapper-carryingelements, arcuate guide plates operatively associated with each spiderfor loosely holding the wrappers and their contents in said carryingelements, and means to hold the wrappers against endwise movement whilebeing filled: the improvement which combines flexible resilient elementswith said guide plates for snugly holding wrappers and their contentstogether firmly in said carrying elements after the wrappers have beenfilled and before they are removed from the carrying elements.

4. In a straw packaging machine wherein are provided wrapper-receivingmeans, straw-receiving means, means to deliver straws from saidstraw-receiving means into the wrappers on said Wrapper-receiving means,said last named means including wrapper-end-engaging slide members andan abutment plate and straw pushers for pushing straws into the wrapperson said wrapper-receiving means, and fixed annular guides for looselyholding the wrappers and their contents in place on saidwrapper-receiving means: the improvement which resides in combining withthe aforesaid structure resiilent flexible elements located at theposition where the straws are placed fully into the wrappers and theslides and pushers are about to be withdrawn for holding wrappers andstraws firmly in place in the wrapper-receiving means while the slidemembers and pushers are being withdrawn.

5. In a straw packaging machine wherein are provided wrapper-receivingmeans, straw-receiving means, means to deliver straws from saidstraw-receiving means into the wrappers on said wrapper-receiving means,said last named means including wrapper-end-engaging slide members andan abutment plate and straw pushers for pushing straws into the wrapperson said wrapper-receiving means, and fixed annular guides for looselyholding the wrappers and their contents in place on saidwrapper-receiving means: the improvement which resides in combining withthe aforesaid structure resilient flexible elements located at theposition where the straws are placed fully into the wrappers and theslides and pushers are about to be withdrawn for holding wrappers andstraws firmly in place in the wrapper-receiving means while the slidemembers and pushers are being withdrawn, said flexible resilientelements comprising wires carried by said fixed annular guides.

PAUL C. MOORE, JR.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,146,490 Toolan Feb. '7, 19392,014,227 Conti Sept. 10, 1935

